The Beautiful Oregon Coast

The Oregon Coast: basalt rock cliffs, long sandy beaches and awesome tide pools, colonies of Sea Lions on the rocks, whales spouting off and breaching in the distance and beautiful sunsets. It is magical and in Oregon we call it the coast, not the beach).

I lived in Oregon for 20 years and once spent an entire week by myself camping on the coast from Florence to Astoria. My favorite section is the CENTRAL COAST between Florence and Lincoln City. Here are my favorite things to do and see while there, as well as places to stay and eat.

The Oregon Coast is usually thought of in 3 sections: North, Central and South. Each section is actually a bit different from the others.

The NORTH COAST is popular with visitors from Portland. Astoria, is the northern-most city and is parallel to Portland at the mouth of the Columbia River. There is a beautiful bridge there which takes you to the Washington side. In the northern section you will also find the Lewis and Clark camp and the Tillamook Cheese plant where you can take a tour. Seaside has accessible beaches and lots of activity and is very popular--good for families, but a bit more touristy than I care for. Cannon Beach is a cute little town with very pretty rocky views.

The CENTRAL COAST, which this lens will cover, starts in Lincoln City, which is also very popular with sandy beaches, and ends in Florence, with its nearby sand dunes.

The SOUTH COAST begins at Florence and includes Coos Bay and Bandon, again with some great rock outcroppings, as well as a strong Native American heritage. It is known for its oysters and cranberries. At Brookings, near the California border, you enter into the Redwoods region.

Begin your trip to the central Oregon coast from Eugene. Choose a route that takes you into the city of Florence where you will meet up with Route 101. After exploring the Florence area, head north and you will be entering the Central Coast area. Most people reach the far northern section by way of Portland. If you want to travel the entire coast, I would give it at least a week, so you can take it easy and enjoy yourself.

Click on the lettered points on the map to see the names of the locations.

In addition to the two downtown restaurants listed here, there are other good eateries in downtown Newport: one is a nice microbrewery. I am not as familiar with many of these new places, so have not included them here, but I'm sure if they are thriving that they are very good.

There are many, many spots to stop along the coast of Oregon. So much of it's coastline is public property. Check the tide charts as this will be a factor in what you are able to see. If the tide is minus or very low, you will have great tide pool views. If the tides are high, you should have better wave action and spouting horn views.

Whales migrate along the Oregon Coast and head south from December through early February and back north from March through October. For the northern trek, most pass by in March and April, but some do hang around and it is still possible to see whales throughout the summer.

1. For all you easterners, remember to say "Oragun", not Oregone.
2. And Ya-hots, for Yachats.
3. Watch out for waves and, as it is said, never turn your back on them. There is such a thing as a rogue or sneaker wave and people die from them every year.
4. Be careful to not stand on the log piles as the waves can easily roll them and you will go with them.
5. Don't pick up the animals from the tide pools, especially the starfish. Though tempting, when you pick up starfish you tear off their little feet.
6. Be careful of the slippery seaweed on the rocks in the tide pools and don't go in those areas with bare feet as the barnacles and mussels will cut your feet.
7. In the Northwest it is the "coast", not the "beach" or the "shore".

Here is a list of other things I have fun doing when visiting the Oregon coast.

1. Looking for agates among the rocks on the shore. The best place to look is where there is a small rise of land behind the shore and/or a little stream coming down. Watch for rocks with a sort of semi-translucent quality.
2. Looking for fossilized shells. Some beaches have quite a few fossils. They look like a cross between a real shell and a rock.
3. Looking for glass floats. After storms, sometimes you can find glass floats, but you will have lots of competition and you have to get out there very early.
4. Finding a wash up of Velella Jellyfish on the shore. It is beautiful and they signal soon-to-come glass floats and other interesting debris.
5. Watching the fishing boats bring in their catch at the docks in Newport.
6. Watching the sun seemingly disappear into the water at sunset.
7. And...in the winter months in Oregon when it is perpetually raining in the Willamette Valley (from Portland to Eugene and points south), the coast can be a welcome change. For, often when it is cloudy inland, the coast will be sunny. And if not, well, at least you have a completely different view.

More information about 2 of my favorite finds at the coast.

If you are a nature-lover, an artist, a photographer, a writer, a hiker, a romantic.......you will love the Central Oregon Coast. I can hardly wait to go back.

If you go, I hope you love it as much as I do.

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